Ifá Divination System as an Embodiment of both the Internalist and Externalist bases of Justification in African Epistemology

Abstract

An essential part of the concept of knowledge is the belief that the basic premises for knowledge must be justified. This means that for a knowledge
claim to be true, there is a need for its justification. In African epistemology, the justification of beliefs and epistemic claims has mostly been considered from an externalist perspective such that justification appears to be one dimensional. Since epistemic claims can be justified using either the internalist or externalist perspective, this paper aims at showing that there are internalism and externalism in African epistemology and that Ifá divination system embodies both the internalist and externalist basis of justification in African epistemology.

Keywords: Internalism, Externalism, African Epistemology, (Ifá) divination, Justification